Desert
by Muse Lord Mai-chan
Summary: Side Story Samus wakes up after being shot to find herself, Katan, Ness, and Pichu on a Desert Planet. They must survive its challenges and rise up if they ever have any hope of returning to their friends again. Samus/Katan POV


Holy Crap, I'm back

Roy: Woot!

Link: Took you long enough

Marth: Well, what torture do we have to go through _this_ time?

Actually, not much. This story... Well, you'll see : ) Someone disclaim already!

Fox: Hold your horses, geesh. Mai doesn't own anything except Desert and her OC's. Which there are a lot of in this story, due to the lack of available Smashers.

Link and Marth: Welcome to a new story!

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**Desert**

**Chapter 1**

**Death Is A Strange Thing  
**

* * *

What perfect timing. Of all things, why did this have to happen?

I lay on the sand, trying to figure out just how I had actually gotten here.

Oh. Right.

It was Christmas, and I had woken up early. The bed was warm, unusually warm, in fact. Actually, I wasn't even in my _room_. My heart skipped a beat as I realized someone was sleeping next to me. With a smile, I had leaned over and kissed my navy-haired ex-prince. Blue eyes opened and blinked at me, in a moment of confusion. Suddenly they cleared and a smile split across his face.

"Good morning, my dear Samus." His smile grew wider and wider, his eyes equally bright.

"Good morning, my prince Marth." I snuggled closer to him as he raised a hand to his forehead with a sudden grumble. I blinked. "What's wrong?"

Lowering his arm until it was wrapped around me, he replied, "I think I drank too much last night. Sure was some party, huh?"

I realized he had a hangover. "Yeah, it was wonderful." I didn't just mean the party though. Catching my meaning, he chuckled softly, holding me closer. It wasn't until then that I realized how full my bladder felt.

"Um… I need to use the bathroom." I blushed and began to wriggle my way out of his arms. He sat up as well, eyeing my naked body as I made my way gracefully to the bathroom. He stood up as well and caught my arm before I had fully entered. Turning around in confusion, my lips met his as he pressed his body against mine. Playfully, I poked him. "Now, now, patience my dear."

"Fiiine." He sat down on the bed, a smile on his face all the same. I laughed at him before closing the door.

While I was taking care of my business, I heard the young Smashers beginning to shout "It's Christmas! It's Christmas!" in the hallways, and I barely suppressed my laughter as Marth shouted "Shut up!" back to them. Finishing up, I jumped in shock as an explosion rocked the room. Loosing my balance, I fell, scraping my knee. Deafening screeching noises filled the air, and then the roar of a frightened beast split through the screeches.

A whooshing noise followed the din, and subconsciously I wondered how Marth's head felt after all that noise. Then I heard Roy's voice. "Hey you, leave Zelda alone!" he yelled. "What did you do with Katan?" Silence, then, "Luan!" More silence. "Katan! Katan, is that you?" More whooshing, then silence.

"Roy!" Marth's call echoed. Footsteps faded away. I hurried out of the bathroom. Marth wasn't there anymore. Looking around, I grabbed a bathrobe, navy blue in color. (A random detail I noticed.) Tying it closed, I took off after Marth.

I found him out back of the mansion, where a long lawn disappeared into a woody area to the northwest, marsh to the northeast. Marth had just stuck his foot out and tripped Roy, who rolled before attempting to punch Marth. Link stopped him. Roy was in hysterics. What in the _universe_ was going on? A fourth figure appeared from the woods. Luan. He was talking too low for me to hear, but whatever he said, Roy became more furious. I figured it was time to intervene.

"Marth! Link! Roy!" I called, running towards them. Marth's turned to look at me before horror covered his face. I barely saw Luan raise his arm. Then everything became so slow. A loud bang split my head as a bullet rushed towards me. I moved too slow to avoid it. Pain flooded my body as strange red fluid flew from the general area of my heart. It was blood. It was _my _blood. I barely heard Marth's horrified scream. Whatever he yelled, I didn't quite understand as the ground rushed up to meet my face. I couldn't move, I couldn't breath.

Vibrations from the ground, then I felt gentle hands turning me face up. A warm hand covered the spot where it hurt, causing the pain to increase. Fortunately, my body was too numb to care. It was then that I realized. I was dying.

"I'm sorry Marth." I coughed painfully, looking up to his horrified face. Would I have enough oxygen to speak my words? I felt trapped, like I couldn't say all that I needed. I could only watch in horror as my vision began to dim. I saw Roy's face, and Link's too. They were sad. I wheezed in. "Roy, Link, you are my brothers, Zelda and Peach and Katan my sisters. Marth, you are my love. I won't forget…" I was out of time. I put on a smile, hoping Marth wouldn't be too sad. The last thing I felt was his lips on mine. Then darkness.

I wasn't sure how long I was floating in darkness before I realized I even _was_ floating. In space. The stars glittered around me, brighter than I remember them ever being. I saw Nintendo. Why was there a white light beginning to surround it? Suddenly, it broke into pieces, each piece turning into a planet. I didn't understand, I couldn't. What was my name? Who _was_ I? I turned away, my memory slipping away before I realized I wasn't floating anymore.

I needed to fight! I grabbed my drifting memories, tying them down. I fought off the urge to just stop and let it all go. I took a gasping breath, and opened my eyes.

Where was I now? What happened to space? I was laying on something warm and somewhat soft. Moving my hand (I was dead, so why did my body feel so stiff and heavy?) I felt what I was laying on. Sand. I pushed myself up and looked about. I seemed to be… In a desert. I laid back down. And now, here I am.

My throat felt unusually dry. Well, that should be expected, it was a freaking _desert._ I needed to find water if I was to survive. Wait, I'm already _dead_. Surely I couldn't die again?

I wasn't sure how long I'd been laying there before I began to hear something. An odd sound. A very sandy sound. I sat up slowly, and then stood up even slower, trying to avoid dizziness. I was dead, could I get dizzy? Perhaps it was an enemy I heard. Someone coming to attack me, to kill me.

When was I going to remember I was dead already!?

Climbing the nearest dune, I saw a mixture of humans, lizards, and a few other odd creatures. They were traveling through the valleys between the giant dunes, avoiding the burning sunlight that was now trying to fry my skin.

Can you get sunburn if you're dead?

Suddenly, I was on the ground, a wolf's face glaring into mine. Perhaps it _is_ possible to die even in death then. Great, I'd been here hardly twenty-four hours, and my new life was already about to end. But then, a whistle sounded, and the wolf's weight was gone. Blinking at the sun, I figured I was going to die again anyways, so I didn't bother to stand back up. I heard voices now, each one sounding like men.

I could put up with dying again, but I wasn't about to let men take control of me. When they were close enough, I flung myself up and down the dune on top of them. Their shocked faces blurred as I took down one of them, rolling over and over down the hill. Sometimes I was on top, sometimes he was. Somehow, in spite of his shock, he secured my arms in his grasp. It was firm, but not rough. Not what I was expecting.

Finally our roll stopped, my head feeling like it was about to split in two. The man still had my arms, but he quickly let go before laughing.

Wait. I just tackled this guy, rolled him down a hill, and he was _laughing?!_ Yep. I was doomed.

"Hey there lady, chill, chill. We don't mean you any harm." His voice became serious, but the hint of his laughter was still there. I opened my eyes, glaring at him. He wore an eye patch that covered a small portion of a scar that ran from his forehead to his neck. The kind of scar that you think someone wouldn't live from. He was tall, and he looked quite intelligent.

"I'm in Hell, I know it now." I muttered. My voice was barely there, and certainly very cracked

"Hell? Oh no. Temperature-wise, we're similar, but Hell is for the people who are actually dead." The man offered a hand. Not wanting to rush my death, I took it, but warily. He lifted me, only for vertigo to take over.

"Steady there little lady." He spoke. "What's your name? Do you remember?"

I regained my stature, and then coughed to clear my throat. I opened my mouth only for nothing to come out. He laughed at me again, before pulling out his canteen.

"Here. Water. Might not be as cold as it probably is from wherever you're from, but it'll keep you hydrated." He winked. "The name's Phoenix, but you can call me Nix. The wolf that jumped on you is Amina, and her master is Izu. Together, they're my Captains. I'm the leader of this little band, and of the Rebels." I took the canteen and drank. It was the best water I'd ever drunken.

"Sir, are you sure we should be sharing information? She might be a spy." A man walked up. The wolf, Amina, was at his side, eyeing me as warily as I eyed her.

"Izu, do we usually find spies that are willing to attack us with no weapons at hand, no canteen, no protection from the hot sun? She's obviously new here." Nix smoothly replied to Izu's worried questions. "And, she's brave. Say, young lady, would you care to join us?"

I blinked. "I don't even know where I am. I don't know a single thing about this place, or who the Rebels are, or who they're rebelling against, _nothing._ The last thing I remember is I was shot- Oh my." The memories came back fully and clearly now.

Nix smiled sadly. "Ah yes. Welcome to Desert, the planet where the Goddess of Life has made her home. Of course, we have no clue where her home truly is. The rumor goes that she lives by a mystical oasis that only a chosen few can find. A group, the Empire, are trying to find that Oasis and claim the planet for their own. We, the Rebels, are the self-proclaimed protectors of that secret, even though we too have no clue as to the whereabouts of Oasis ourselves."

It was a lot to take in. "Well… I suppose I'll just have to join the Rebels then." It was an unfair decision. I hadn't gotten to hear the other side's argument, but I didn't have much of a choice. Unless…

"So wait. Are you saying that I'm _alive_?" I asked. Nix nodded. Hope surged through my chest. _Marth, wait for me!_ Already, I could imagine the shock and joy on his face when I returned to him.

I realized I'd missed something that Nix had said. "I'm sorry, what did you say?"

Nix's face was troubled. "If you were planning on leaving as soon as possible, you may want to change your plans. Desert has an extremely strong gravitational pull for such a small planet. You'll need an extremely strong ship to escape its pull. Unfortunately still, that kind of technology doesn't exist on Desert."

My heart stopped beating again. Marth's smiling face turned to the last time I'd seen him, tear-streaked and in pain. At my death.

I wasn't going to see him again.

I wasn't going to see any of my friends again.

I nearly broke down then and there, but a distraction grabbed my attention. Another man came running through the sand. "Sir Nix!" the man was breathless, a bit of sweat on his brow.

"What is it, Fallon?" Nix replied, still serious.

"We've found someone. Four actually. Weird characters. Probably couldn't escape the pull and ended up here." Fallon replied.

"Right. Lead the way, Major." We followed Fallon to the head of the large group. A girl stood over the other three, wielding a long sword. I gasped in shock. It was Katan! I recognized Pichu and Ness on the ground, as well as a fourth person. I didn't know him. Looking at Katan, I realized that it wasn't the Katan I knew. Katan had black hair, like obsidian, and sapphires for eyes. This Katan had snowy white hair and her blank eyes were silver. Ness shared the color change, his hair white and his eyes, equally empty, were silver. Pichu's normally yellow fur was bleached white, and his eyes were a milky blue. I wanted to puke, but there wasn't anything worth puking in my stomach.

Nix approached Katan, who growled like an animal. "Don't worry little one, what is your name?" he asked, handing her a stick he had pulled from his pocket while I had stared in shock. I stared at the stick. It looked like candy.

She blinked fearfully. "Na-name? Name?"

"Yes, what is your name? Do you remember, child?" Nix looked at her as a frightened look crossed her face.

"Name? I… Don't recall… Nothing… Promise… Promise me…" Katan went into hysterics. "Promise! Promise!" she broke down into tears.

"Oh my, this is a bad case. She doesn't even remember her name…" Nix frowned.

"I know her name." I spoke up. Nix looked over in surprise. "Her name is Katan. The boy is Ness, the mouse Pichu… But…"

"But what, little lady?" Nix asked.

"Katan had black hair, not white. Ness too. Their eyes aren't supposed to be silver. And Pichu had yellow fur and black eyes…" I fell to my knees. What was going on?

"Ah yes, another… Side effect to Desert. When people don't just crash land here, or end up here from death, but find _another_ way to Desert, like Transportation techniques or magic, they just… Change. Loose their memories too. Do you know the man?" Nix pointed to the man.

"No, I don't." I looked at Katan. She was staring at me, tears still streaming down her face, but she wasn't making a single noise. Not moving, either. Did she remember me?

"Kat? Katan? Do you remember me? Its your friend Samus… You know, the Bounty Hunter?" I got closer to her. She started to shy away, but then stopped. Was there a flash of recognization behind her eyes?

"I-I'm sorry, I don't remember… Anything… Except…" here, she trailed of into her own thoughts.

"Remember what, dear?" I took her into my arms. I'd never noticed the cinnamon scent she carried before…

"A… A promise." She spoke so softly I barely heard her. I hugged her, feeling tears well up into my eyes. This was the worst Christmas ever.

* * *

Well, I hope this makes up for my absence.

Ike: What if it doesn't?

Then too bad. Anyways, as you might be able to tell, this story is going to take place over the three years between Beginnings and Return. It will be told in Samus's Point of View and Katan's Point of View (Katan won't be as whiny as Samus, I promise. : ) )

Pichu: We hope you enjoy it!

Pit: Review please!


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